I have been amazed, over the last two to three years, about how the Affordable Care Act hasn’t been fought against harder. This is truly an unconstitutional act, to force US citizens to have health care. For individuals to Have affordable health care, you do NOT mandate that everyone has to have health care. You work on those who provide the health care, and make those costs affordable.

I believe this act is unconstitutional on the following grounds:

1. Nowhere in the US Constitution, the bedrock for all the US laws, does it state that health care must be provided to any individual. Our individual rights, as laid out in the Bill of Rights, mandate that individual citizens, unless the individual oversteps others’ rights, have the right to life, liberty, and the Pursuit Of Happiness. Notice that it states specifically, the pursuit of happiness. No one can dictate what happiness is to any individual, each person’s idea of happiness is separate from each other’s. Nowhere in the constitution, or the Bill of Rights, or any amendments, is there a right to health care. Health care is an individual decision, not a right. Voting is a right, not an individual decision. Health care is a privilege, based on your ability to pay for and receive health care. Because hospitals perform health care for individuals who can’t afford this, when these individuals show up emergency rooms, does not mandate that others must pay the bills for these individuals. There are thousands of medical professionals being graduated every year. To pay off their debts, especially if these individuals went to school on a government scholarship or loan, these individuals should be mandated to set up and work from a clinic located in those areas where people are too poor to afford health care. This used to be done, in days long ago, when Americans had civic pride. It should be mandatory, backed with fines and prison terms for those medical professionals who do not wish to participate. After all, as President John Fitzgerald Kennedy, the last great democrat president said, “Ask not what your country can do for you…Ask, what can you do for your country…”

2. The slim twig that the Supreme Court used to attempt to validate the Affordable Care Act is, indeed, a very slim twig to have an entire law hang from. The slim twig is thus: The Act is legal because congress has the authority to levy taxes on the public, and as such, those fines are in actuality, “taxes”. Since this is now a tax, congress can mandate this under the commerce department in the congress’ role as tax collecting authority for the federal government. This twig breaks, and loudly, because: You Cannot Tax Anyone For Something They Have Not Purchased!!! This is akin to having someone come into a car dealership, admire a Rolls-Royce, but then have to pay the taxes on the car because you didn’t buy it. Or, if you decided to go to a grocery store, roamed the aisles, then decide you didn’t want to buy anything. But you couldn’t leave the store until you pay the taxes on everything you looked at, even though you don’t want the items.

These are just two of the reasons I can think of for the, let’s call it what it is, Obamacare Act to be unconstitutional. Any organization, any individual, DOES NOT, I repeat, DOES NOT have to pay any fines, taxes, levies, etc. Why? Because these are not legally mandated fees for a lawful Act or Law. The constitution details what a legal law is. No matter how any lawyers or judges try to skim around this one law, the Affordable Care Act, and all of its rules and regulations, are illegal. A first year law student should be able to fight this in court, all the way to the Supreme Court, with ease. The ACA imposes an unlawful fiscal burden on individuals and on businesses, demanding that individuals suffer the weight of a system the individuals did not have a hand in working on, their representatives did not have a hand in shaping, and individuals did not have an opportunity to have a meaningful discussion on. As such, as in the Tea Act which resulted in the establishment of our great country, we, the taxpayers of the US of A, are not beholden to support the ACA, or to be subject to any penalties this act ascribes to us.

If we do not fight against this act, in our entirety, and have this unlawful imposition removed, we will be subject to more and more punitive acts and laws that will, along with the other issues affecting our country, cause us all to succumb to a system that prevails over all aspects of our life.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Swing Separate…”

The president announced that he was going to congress to get $500 million to buy equipment and train Syrian moderates fighting Assad. obama announces over the weekend that he will request $2 billion for the “poor children coming across the border, a great humanitarian crisis”. In none of these announcements did the president say anything about fixing these problems. The president is big on identifying problems to put up as an issue or crisis, but not so big on actually fixing anything.

Let us start with the money to aid the moderates in Syria fighting Assad. In 2012, the president said that “there is a line that must not be crossed”, and Assad immediately crossed it. Both the president and then-secretary of state hillary clinton, as reported by NBC News on 20 Aug 2012, stated that the red line must not be crossed, or there would be enormous consequences. Apparently, those consequences were to have obama and hillary talk even more about consequences. The only thing obama did was that he authorized $50 million for the rebels, to be used on “non-lethal support”, which worked out to be for communications equipment, some vehicles for transport, and what ever else that could be considered “non-lethal”, whatever that is. With repeated denials of support for the rebels, there was only one way this was going, and it went that way. The radicals and ISIL terrorists started taking more and more control of the rebellion. It was only a matter of time before this leaked over to another, fairly unstable country, Iraq.

Now, let’s talk about the “humanitarian crisis” on the US southern border. Anyone who didn’t see this coming spent most of their time in a real dream world. The DREAM (or rather NIGHTMARE) Act was supposed to be used for those who were bought here illegally by their family, who were pursuing a better life, and give them a pathway to eventual citizenship or at least a green card. While I sympathize with those who were bought here with no option to stay behind, this Act was not the way to go. However, for all of those children that are now flowing over the border thinking they will be eligible for the dream act, the proper response is to deport them back, chartering a ship or two and loading them on board, as fast as possible. As a matter of fact, we should be doing this to illegal aliens, anyway. Any other country does not tolerate, will not contenance, such an act as allowing illegals to come across. Check what happens if you try to slip across the border in China, North Korea, South Korea, Japan, India, Iran, Kuwait, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Brazil, Portugal, Chile, hell, even Mexico. All of these countries, and more, will throw you in prison, regardless of your age, submit you to hard labor, then deport you, after fining you. There are no such things as allowing illegal aliens access to driver’s licenses, housing, you name it.

The president wants to waste 2.5 billion dollars of your tax dollars supporting something that doesn’t do anything for oour country strategically. The money spent doesn’t support our country tactically. The money will go to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGO), who will waste multitudes of the money on administrators, on helpers, on counselors, and the money going to the Syrian moderates will wind up paying for new weapons and atrocities by ISIL/ISIS. This president thinks this makes him appear as a resolute, determined person. The reality is, this makes him look like an uninformed, ignorant, community organizer. Although this president has a Harvard education, somehow, he never shows it.

This administration should be removed as soon as possible. By stepping back from the world stage, and allowing Russia, China, and Iran to gain a foothold, this president has effectively crushed our country’s image world-wide. No other country seems to have any respect for the US. Currently, Russia has delivered five, count them, five fighter jets to allow the Iraqi military forces to attack the insurgents. The state department has been putting all sorts of red tape and buearacracy in the way of US companies and US military equipment providers to support the Iraqi people. Yet, at the same time, Iran, Russia, and China just ask, What do you want? I know the president doesn’t wonder why we have no influence. It’s because he never wanted the US to have any influence. His assertion that Maliki wouldn’t provide the SOFA terms the president needed to keep troops in place, turns out to be quite a lie, considering that it took the president about two days to reach the same agreement to send 300 military trainers into Baghdad. To allow the flow of children across the border, calling it a humanitarian crisis, is also quite a lie, as people have been flooding across the border more and more over the last two or three ears since the dream act became known in countries south of the US. This is a travesty, made more revolting by nancy pelosi’s crocodile tears over the “humanitarian crisis”.

The people of the US of A need to stand up and demand an accounting from their representatives and senators. John Boehner’s suit against the president is not enough. There should be articles of impeachment drawn up. Harry Truman famously had a sign on his desk that said “The Buck Stops Here”. Everything that is done by the administration, and the cabinet, is the responsibility of the president of the United States. Spiro Agnew knew about responsibility, this is why he resigned. Richard Nixon knew about responsibility, that’s why he resigned. George W Bush knew about responsibility, he bore it with grace and humbleness we have not seen since. This president does not believe in responsibility. This president believes he is the anointed of God. This president is just another man, who has man’s fallability. The president is generally held to a higher standard than the regular politician. As such, this president has failed us in the US, reducing the standard of living, wrecking the US economy, and withdrawing our country’s support and leadership from the international stage. We must take this person out of the office. We have the legal and judicial means. The Supreme Court has again struck down as illegal acts of the president. If the congress cannot act on these issues, it is time to remove the congress, and put in place a new one. Elections are coming up soon. Let’s push now!!!

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Swing Separate…”

Chris Matthews, MSNBC talking head, thrives on misinformation, misleading, and missing his role. To insure that no one mistakes chris for a true news person, chris bleats that he is an Op-Ed person. In layman’s terms, that means he’s an Opinionated Editor of facts.

With the scandals going on and on with the obama administration, chris zeroes on on what is important: Governor Chris Christie may have been involved with the bridge holdup in Jersey. Hmmm, let’s see how that affects the US: Miles of lines of cars, even though people were notified in advance of possible delays; some rescue people were delayed in reaching or delivering people who needed assistance, EVEN THOUGH there were alternate routes that would have not delayed the rescue and police as much; no evidence of payoffs to insure something happened; the person involved with the decision was fired, and Chris Christie was actually found not involved with the bridge issue himself.

Let’s look at the scandals that chris matthews avoids looking at or even mentioning: The IRS scandal; the Benghazi scandal; the VA scandal; the obamacare scandal; the Fast and Furious scandal; the Iraq scandal; the Syria scandal; the Ukraine scandal; the list goes on.

If chris matthews really wants to be taken seriously, he needs to operate from facts. His ability to ignore facts helps him to state fiction as facts, and he rants and raves to hide his lack of intelligence and desire to ignore the facts. Stupid is as stupid does, according to Forrest Gump, but sometimes too much stupid is a terrible thing. The United Negro College Fund used to have a saying “A mind is a terrible thing to waste”. This doesn’t apply to chris; he doesn’t have a mind, just the enormous ability to spew garbage. Is there any wonder no one watches MSNBC?

chris matthews is someone who may have spent the sixties wandering through haight-ashbury, central park, and other assorted places. he joined the peace corps, when other men were headed to vietnam. Here’s the big one, though: Only 1 in 20, or 1 in 50, during the vietnam war era, actually went into combat in vietnam. Although we had a big presence in saigon and other places, the majority of US combat troops were: A. Stationed in Germany, awaiting the big push; B. Stationed in South Korea, Japan, or the Phillipine Islands, awaiting the big push there; or C. Stationed in CONUS (CONtinental US for the non-military) awaiting the big push. chris decided to insure there wasn’t any opportunities for him to possibly get involved with any fighting on any continent, by joining the peace corps. Then he comes back to the US and becomes a Police Officer? How did that happen? Then he was a speechwriter, chief of staff, ran for congress (or thought about it), and loads of other things from the 80s to Oughts. What a renaissance man!

The reality is that mr matthews is just another flack, not even a hack, who cannot look at a true scandal, but instead, uses his bully pulpit to exscortiate anyone without his point of view. A journalist of any stripe is supposed to be objective. I cannot, with good conscienceness, or even bad, place matthews with people like Sean Hannity, Bret Baier, Anderson Cooper, Christiane Amanpour, Bill O’Reilly, Ann Marie Green, etc.

Well, msnbc continues to run matthews. It sounds like a charity job to me. Late at night, running against opposition channels carrying, of all things, comedy late night stand-up and interview shows, and still can’t beat them. This is where the Fourth Estate has finally fallen to. Hacks and flacks posing and embarrassing themselves, in the hope that someone listens to them and get a “tingle up their leg”. If I were the editor in chief at MSNBC, I’d remove this guy as soon as possible. However, in the world of the liberal democrats, chris is a, well, voice. With a voice like that, it would be better to have it shut up.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Hang Separate…”

Huge announcement this morning. obama had the special forces team, that has been trailing mastermind behind the Benghazi Consulate attack, pick him up. During his press conference, he called it “arresting the bad guy”. Tell us something, obama. Your press representatives from the pentagon and the white house say that the team has been trailing him for the last two years. He hasn’t been hiding, as a matter of fact, he has given several interviews, including with CNN. According to your spokespeople, it took two weeks in 2012 to collect all of the information needed to arrest the guy. And the team was ready to pick up this guy last year, but was called off by the administration. What was that about? You needed to pick the best opportunity to show off your “international diplomacy skills”?

This administration has done such a slipshod job on the international stage, it’s a wonder anyone pays us any attention at all. Wait, the Iraqis aren’t!! They’re approaching the Iranians, and have the commanding general of Iran’s Qods Guards advising the MOD. What else? Oh, yeah, because of our fearless leader’s desire to “end the war in Iraq”, ISIS now have M-1 Abrams tanks to roll around in. Despite what the admiral, the pentagon spokesman, said today, can anyone show us all of the Stinger Air-to-Ground missiles that the Iraqi security forces had, prior to the rout? If ISIS have Abrams, what makes you think they don’t have the Stingers? The one good thing is that the F-16 hadn’t been delivered to Iraq. However, the C-130Js, some of the most sophisticated cargo planes around, may be missing. Even one of those outfitted to be an AC-130 by ISIS could be a serious issue for ground forces, not to mention anyone they decide to take shots at. Would be really embarrassing if ISIS did something like that, then sent the plane to Syria. Or to Turkey, for that matter .

We need to get back into Iraq, with ground troops and air support. We need to go in and stay until the country is stable, regardless of how long it takes. I said before, we didn’t turn our backs on Europe, Japan, Korea, Kuwait, when we completed our missions there. We still have bases in all of these places. Why was Iraq so different? Iraq wasn’t, the president was and is. This president shirked his responsibility on foreign policy, shirked his strategic responsibilities to this country and to Iraq. What was he thinking? He was thinking about his next term of office.

With the scale of disasters this administration has had, domestically and foreign, I am just so shocked that there hasn’t been a call for his impeachment. Richard Nixon was taken for impeachment for missing 18 and a half minutes in hours of taping. Lois Lerner lost TWO YEARS worth of emails, and it’s ho-hum by congress. This administration is governing by executive fiat. Where’s the congress? Where’s the supreme court? Where’s the outrage? If this had been a Republican president, the screaming and yelling and threats of impeachment would have caused the man above to cover his ears!!

It’s one thing to go on jaunts when there’s nothing going on. But, as president, something is always going. Going on fundraising trips when your consulate is being burned down, when your attorney general is responsible for weapons being sold to criminals, when your VA director is giving bonuses to allow vets to die, when your health and human services secretary drops everyone’s health insurance, after you sign one of the biggest frauds in human history, is downright criminal. But no one calls anyone to account.

I can understand when the liberal press soft-pedals or ignores the problems of this administration. What I don’t understand, why doesn’t Fox hit hard when they have the opportunity. Having hillary on Special Report, I thought there would be a go-for-the-, it was like throat portion, but Bret was so easy on hillary, I thought I was watching MSNBC.

What will it take for my country to stand up and say “No More!” What will it take for us to say “This far, and no farther.” Will it be when the barbarians are kicking in our door? When??

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Swing Separate…”

Under the current administration, the US looks as though it’s having a serious loss of confidence in its ability to help out our allies, and for those we promised to help. Ukraine, barack obama said we would stand by staunchly. This lasted up to the point where Russian separatists fought and caused the “election” to secede from the Ukraine. Then there is the famous “Line In The Sand” speech that obama made. Then there’s Iraq. On three separate occasions, the administration’s highest officials, namely obama, biden, and kerry, all said the same thing over the last three years: We don’t need to keep an eye on Iraq, Iraq is stable and can take care of themselves. This, after numerous requests from the Iraqi and Kurdish governments for the US government and US military to return to Iraq to help stabilize the country, work to firm up their military, and act as bulwark against the terrorists while Iraq is rebuilding.

Now, Syria is a cesspool, whether its Assad’s chemical warfare, or the Islamists terrorists attacks. The Ukraine is constantly boiling, even though the new president is vowing crackdowns at the same time as Russia is sending arms across the border flagrantly in defiance of the new Ukraine government. And Iraq is about to splinter, not, as joe biden says, into three sections, but into multiple segments fighting each other as vehemently as they are the Islamists. And the instability of the region will filter across borders into Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and, funnily enough, Iran. Lebanon, as I said in a previous post, is sitting on a powder keg, just awaiting the spark necessary to blow it wide open. The militias that used to support Syria, can no longer expect that support, and when people get desparate, there’s no telling how bad it can get. The main issue facing the administration, though, is Iraq.

We had the chance, the opportunity, and the responsibility, to help steer Iraq into a secular, democratic state. We had the chance to work with the Iraqi military, to instill a sense of pride and self into their military. Instead, the administration turned their backs on Iraq, refused every request for assistance from the Iraqi government, and basically turned their backs on our allies. We left thousands to be murdered, because obama didn’t want to engage in discussions with the maliki government. Maybe if obama had done his job and spoke with the Iraqi government, instead of attending fund-raising events and golfing with tiger woods, notvto mention the flights to hawaii to relax and recuperate, we may have had permanent installations in Iraq, a permanent garrison able to bolster the Iraqi defense forces, and we would have been in a better position in regards to Syria and the ISIS/ISIL.

Of course, we should have known better. When obama made the “historic” speech about the line in the sand, if Assad used chemical weapons, many thought the man had grown a pair or more. However, even with proof from the UN, obama did his famous turn about, and mentioned something about sending weapons or money, maybe. This, of course, after he unilaterally, and illegally, launched air strikes against Libya.

We are now at the crossroads. No one is taking us seriously. China builds facilities in disputed areas in the South China Sea, ignoring our protests, as well as the Asian countries in the regions. Russia openly arms rebels in the Ukraine, and whereever else they can foment issues, trying to reclaim Russia’s former “glory”. Iran is given relief from the sanctions that had been imposed, because Itan “might” stop pursuing nuclear weapons. Pakistan openly gives sanctuary to Taliban, as the Taliban rebuilds to re-invade Afghanistan. And that’s the international stage. Let’s not forget about all the illegal border-crossers, not immigrants, illegal aliens, flooding across our porous borders.

On the domestic front, the failure of obamacare is so incredible, its past ridiculous. The discussion about affordable health care, was supposed to be focused on the providers of medicine and health care. Instead, obama, in his infinite lack of wisdom, decided to penalize, not the health care industry, but the consumers. Then, the Supreme Court compounded the ignorance by saying the law is legal, because it’s a tax that can be levied, IF YOU DON’T HAVE INSURANCE!!!! That’s like saying you can be taxed because you don’t own a car, a house, etc. And the fact that no one fights this is as ridiculous as obamacare. The IRS scandal is just so incredible, it’s disgusting. To have an agency of the federal government focus on, and impede, legal organizations during a presidential campaign, and no one goes to jail, words fail me. Fast and Furious, giving confiscated arms to gangsters and criminals across the border, leading to the death of a federal office, should have, and under a Republican president, would have, led to the arrest of the Attorney General and everyone involved. The Dream Act, another illegal act, allowing young illegal aliens to come to the US, and jump the queue for citizenship, is something else that words fail me with. Now, the VA has been caught skimming the cream. And yet again, just like the Justice Department and the IRS, no one is going to jail.

Under this administration, our friends have been kicked in the teeth, or left lying in front of the bus, or simply ignored. Our enemies are given carte blanche to do whatever they wish, whenever they wish. Honest citizens are held hostage by inane and illegals laws, while illegal aliens and criminals are protected. When did the US go this way? When did we start to decide that turning our backs on friends, ignoring the country’s legal citizens in favor of its illegal aliens is the correct thing to do? When did we decide that its better to have our citizens living on the welfare line is better than having our citizens work hard to make a better life? When did we begin our downward spiral? And who will stop it? hillary clinton? I don’t think so. joe biden? Not on your life. al gore? Not someone who decided to sell an American television network to a group with the avowed aim of denigrating the US, instead of to an American group.

The US needs strong leadership. The US needs to regain its position as the world’s foremost superpower. We cannot give up our leadership. We cannot abdicate our responsibility to the world. To do so, leaves us vulnerable to attack from every side. To do so, leaves our country in a very weak position, susceptible to invasion, either economic or actual, from our enemies, and none of our former allies willing or able to help us.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Swing Separate…”

It seems incongruous that newspapers and news services are allowing so many “specialists” the coverage they get. For me, the pinnacle, I thought, was the selection of Angelina Jolie to be a Dame of the British Empire. The reason for her selection: Her work on reducing sexual violence as a tool of war. That’s as preposterous an idea as any I have ever heard. Maybe those who are committing atrocities in Africa, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Iraq, Syria, South America, all are following new guidelines: We don’t commit sexual violence. And the middle east will settle down, Palestine will become a peaceful nation, all the countries in the middle east will sign a peace agreement with Israel, and Iran will stop trying to produce a nuclear weapon.

To expect someone to convince the dictators, terrorists, and other evil people not to use the best terror weapon they have is like taking an ice cube to the devil: not going to happen. Sexual Violence in war is a given. No matter the fine words that are spoken in the UN, in front of all the hollywood elite, and to all the progressives in Europe and America, will not change a thing. Giving someone an award for pretty speeches does not alleviate the horror that is being perpetrated daily around the world. If Dame Jolie wants to make a difference in sexual violence in wars, let me see her don a helmet and IBA (Individual Body Armor), pick up a weapon, and go into those villages and cities where Islamists, terrorists, thugs, bandits, and hoodlums are, and protect those who are weak and helpless, who have no one to protect them.

I know that Miss Jolie is an adored member of society. By adopting so many children from around the world, she shows her caring side. It’s easy to show you are caring, when you don’t have to sacrifice your life style. Its easy to be seen as benevolent, when you don’t have to spend your days, every day, fighting to survive. All of these so-called philanthropists do nothing more than give away less than they make in a day, and the progressives and liberals think this is such a great thing. Meanwhile, in villages in Nigeria and Ukraine, in cities in Chad and Syria, the terrorists are laughing as they force women to perform obscene acts, then cutting off heads, at best, cutting off appendages, including women’s breasts, and performing mutilations on the women. Even men are not safe, as bandits and rogues in many places see any man not with them, as nothing more than women, and will rape them to make sure the men feel less than a man.

If Miss Jolie wants to prove herself, let us see her give up making her movies, and instead, devote her life full time to fighting the violence. If Miss Jolie wants to be considered more than just another fluff-brained air head, who’s inconsequential mutterings are supposed to mean something, let us see herput down her mantle as movie celebrity, and do something concrete. Miss Jolie has no credentials that prove her worth. But, hollywood and the tabloids have never based their slavish devotion to anything that makes sense.

When we begin to be rational about what war and violence is, then we can have a rational debate, and maybe, just maybe, we can do something about war. But man is irrational when war is the issue, and violence must always be met with violence to end wars. Speeches and wringing hands about sexual violence as a tool of war does not, I repeat, does not do anything. It just makes for pretty, and pretty empty, words.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Swing Separate…”

The US is on the brink. Despite what the white house is telling the American people, there are serious issues facing the US. The US people, myself included, have a remarkable lack of faith in our government, especially the white house and the democrat-controlled senate. This administration is showing a serious lack of intelligence regarding foreign and domestic policies, a serious disregard for the constitution, and a desire, manifest desire, to cripple our defenses, remove our borders, and fill our welfare rolls with illegal immigrants and those who don’t desire to work. On top of all this, this administration ignores the continuing scandals that have erupted from many of the agencies that are supposed to be serving the people, not the other way around.

barack obama’s incompetence has come very well to the fore with the implosion in Iraq. The administration’s desire to remove the bulwarks underpinning the fragile democracy in Iraq, led to a slow deterioration of the government. The president decided to act like he was handling a local dispute among gang members and local people in a parish in Chicago. He gave an ultimatum to the president of a sovereign country: Sign or we leave. Apparently, obama flunked leadership principles and concepts. This enraged maliki, who proceeded to tear up any agreements we had. I believe that obama did this deliberately. As a matter of fact, we all know he did. obama was able to implement our military’s removal from Iraq, fulfilling a promise to the US people, while destroying, not just breaking, but destroying all our promises to the Iraqi people.

Now, we have the ISIS/ISIL rampaging through the middle of Iraq. Their aggression and their terror tactics are sweeping through a large swathe of Syria and Iraq. To combat this, Iranian, not US, not coalition, not UN troops, Iranian troops are pouring across the border, supposedly to protect Shiite holy sites. But the ultimate result will be Iran securing a foothold in Iraq, establishing themselves in Iraq, and resisting future efforts to be pushed out. Meanwhile, according to press, the ISIS/ISIL have robbed Mosul of upwards of $400 million from the banks. This will fund that group for quite a while. Not to mention acquiring quite a bit of the equipment the Iraqi security forces left when they ran away. Which may wind up in the hands of the Iranian forces.

And why did the security forces run away? Because they didn’t believe in their leaders. And why didn’t they believe in their leaders? Because our so-called president dumped Iraq before we were able to train their leaders to be self-sufficient, before we could work with the Iraqi government to insure that competent leaders weren’t dumped, before we could insure that the Iraqi security forces believed in their country and their people. This administration, for some reason, doesn’t believe, know, or care, that we have a responsibility to the people of the region. We took on that responsibility when we invaded both Afghanistan and Iraq, to try to stabilize this region so people can live their lives, pursue their religion, without fear or favor. By abandoning the people of Iraq, we are now dropping the entire region into chaos, confusion, and ultimately, we will cause the rise of something that may well be as venal, vicious, and corrupt, as anything Adolph Hitler and his minions could dream of. Already, sharia law is attempting to be implemented in Mosul and areas surrounding. Now, Saudi Arabia, formerly a staunch ally of ours, may have problems with insurgents, well paid and well financed insurgents. Lebanon is just one bullet away from falling into anarchy once again. Israel is tightening their fingers on their triggers, with everything swirling around them. Turkey, next door to both Syria and Iraq, has problems of their own with their own militant Islamists. With a free entry door from either, the situation in Turkey could deteriorate so fast, none may be prepared. Further south, in the Emirates, years of discontent with the profligate lifestyles of the royals could be blown wide open by militant mullahs, resulting in the devolution of another swathe of the Middle East. Across the straits, Yemen is festering, as well as Libya. At any time, this president could have used diplomacy and military to settle the region, insure those who want a voice, have a voice, and he could have ushered in a new Arab Spring, not as violent, very peaceful, and very US leaning. This would have led to a stability not seen in decades, if not centuries. Instead, this president has shirked his duties, declined the role of world power, and side stepped his responsibilities to the world at large, and to the US in particular. As a result, we will suffer.

The president and his lackluster security team cannot see what our strategic path is. As a matter of fact, I believe the entire current national security apparatus, excluding the NSA and CIA, have as much a grip on reality as a hippie in the sixties dropping acid. The reason I exclude the two intelligence agencies, is not because of their competence and capability. They have shown a few missteps, but none on the scale of the current administration. The reason I exclude them, is because whatever they present to the NCA, the information is completely ignored by the administration and the state department, two critical places that are supposed use the information to form national and international strategic policy. This administration acts as though it is only concerned with domestic, local policy. When the president says he is frustrated about gun violence ONLY when it occurs in safe neighborhoods, but never says a word about the constant muggings, violence, etc., in the inner cities, you can see the administration and their cohorts are extremely out of touch.

What the US needs, is to remove the current administration from the white house. This is not a racial issue. This is a competence issue. Were this a company, it would either be thoroughly bankrupt, or the entire upper level management removed by shareholders. But its our government, and we need to have them removed before they destroy the country. Nancy Pelosi must be impeached, which can be done. Her blindness to all but her own agendas helps enable this administration. We are, if this administration is not removed, destined to reap the disasters for years.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Swing Separate…”

Previously, I laid out why, on a strategic basis, we should return to Iraq. This time, I lay out the reasons on a humanitarian basis.

The Iraqi people were freed from dictatorship by our brave men and women in uniform. Directed by our previous Commander-in-Chief, and led by able generals and officers, our team rolled into Baghdad and liberated the people in 2003. In the next five years, hard fighting proved to the Iraqi people we believed in freedom and democracy for them, and fought side by side with our men and women.

2007 was a turning point. Insurgents, terrorists really, bought terror and chaos to the Iraqi people. GW decided to surge troops, and from 2007 to 2009, thousands of US troops, as well as coalition troops, surged into the country and worked to stifle the terrorists. This was a resounding success, as the insurgents were thoroughly pushed out of Iraq. Stability started taking hold, and Iraqi security forces started getting trained. The Iraqi people started rebuilding their country, believing our promises to help keep them secure and free. Many Iraqi people worked alongside people from the embassies, worked with US contractors, to learn the best way to rebuild their lives, and to rebuild their country. All this, believing we would always be there to help, notice I said help, protect them.

The Iraqi people were starting to lead normal lives. With US military forces training Iraqi security forces, the Iraqi security posture was starting to improve. In the Kurdish north, tourism started to begin to happen, industry was being rebuilt, and people were electing leaders who looked after the people’s interests. In the south, PM Maliki was trying to consolidate his control, but elsewhere, people were beginning to rebuild their lives, and their infrastructure, with US and coalition assistance. By direction of obama, however, forces started to withdraw, even though Iraqi Defense Chiefs were continually asking the administration to leave enough combat and training troops to insure the stability of Iraq. The overall plan was to have been, to leave combat and training troops to help Iraqi security forces learn to properly perform patrols, maintain the security forces equipment, and help rebuild the local and federal level governments. The state department’s role was supposed to be to work with the political and civil sides to build up a coherent, non-corrupt, all inclusive government. This was the plan that GW had, to be able to eventually have Iraq manage every vestige of its own country. But in the interim, the plan was to insure that Iraq could grow to meet the challenge.

barack obama abandoned that plan. Elected on a wave of false euphoria, called “hope and change”, barack implemented the complete withdrawal of troops from Iraq, without insuring there was adequate support in place for the vacuum. The result was thousands of people, people who believed our presidents’ pledges of support and the words from the secretaries of state, that we would always support and keep safe the country were abandoned. And the excuse we were given by the administration was: The Iraqis won’t give us immunity for our troops. What??!! We kept people in Saudi Arabia, and, even though its a strict monarchy, the people are safer knowing we have bases there. We kept people in Kuwait, and and Kuwaitis sleep safe at night, knowing we have bases full of troops ready to defend them. So why could we not leave troops in Iraq? Why could we not have permanent installations, with forward deployed troops, ready to help defend the Iraqi people for such as this? Why? Because barack obama, hillary clinton, joe biden, were all more concerned about “polls” and their “legacies” than in the strategic needs of our allies. Because of this, thousands of Iraqis have died, millions are displaced, and we need to return immediately.

We have a legacy of helping those who have helped us. We need to return, before Iran gets a bigger foot hold into Iraq. We need to return now, not later.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Hang Separate….”

In 2011, barack obama declared that, since the Iraqis failed to sign a security agreement, all US troops would leave Iraq. All of the critics of his decision were derided as doomsayers. hillary clinton, as Secretary of State, announced that contractors would be able to provide the security apparatus that had been managed by the US military, and thus, the State Department would be able to provide the security and training the Iraqi security forces needed.

1 January, 2012, the State Department got a wake-up call, the 3AM call, but hillary ignored it. The Iraqi government clamped down on US contractor-secured convoys, jailing contractors who provided security, as well as the drivers of the convoys, because these contractors didn’t have the proper visas. And the State Department worked hard NOT to get involved. Contractors were told, because you are Office of Security Cooperation – Iraq (OSC-I) personnel, you didn’t come under the State Department’s Embassy cover. Security personnel were held in jails for up to two weeks, until their parent company could work through the maze to get the proper visas. The embassy couldn’t, not wouldn’t, but could not, per the same Secretary of State’s guidance (Hillary’s guidance) get involved with contractors’ issues. Travel became restricted, without the US military to ensure safety and security, so that movement between sites for equipment, food, personnel, was nearly impossible at times.

The State Department’s refusal to complete the security agreement, led to the debacles that have endangered Iraq’s fledgling democracy. Had the State Department, and the administration, stepped up to the plate, helped the Iraqi government, allowed the DOD to maintain a presence in Iraq, allowed the DOD to build permanent bases and interact properly with the Iraqi security forces, today, Iraq would not have anything like the mess that is currently going on. The administration, and the State Department, have fumbled an opportunity to develop a strong relationship in the Middle East, deter the aggression of Iran, support the security of Iraq’s border with Syria, provided a bulwark against Al Qaeda in the Middle East, and supported Israel’s security, by limiting the aggressive tendencies of Libya, Syria, Yemen, and Iran.

Instead, there is turmoil in Iraq. Two, count them, Two major Iraq cities have fallen under the militant terrorists in the group islamic state of iraq and syria (isis). We have taliban terrorists threatening to kidnap US citizens and military because they see us as weak. Iran is poised to swoop into Iraq, to claim territory and people for the greater good of Iran. The only bulwark now in Iraq is the Kurdish area, and the Kurdish people are starting to set up a separate security apparatus, because the Kurdish people are not even looking for support from the US. And we are ignoring pleas, and begging, by the Iraqi government to come help them out. In the Middle East, the governments in the area are looking at the way we are abandoning our supposed ally, and see us as weak, backstabbing, and useless. How long before these self-same governments start throwing our military out of their countries? Not long.

obama has ignored, turned a blind eye, to a strategic ally in the Middle East. By doing so, this administration has effectively said, the US will not take any part in being a world power. Into this vacuum, I predict, either China or Russia will step in. Neither will want their access to oil and gas to be impeded by something so trivial as religion. I believe that China will be the one that will provide the military support that Maliki and his government so desperately needs. And once China gets into a place, it never leaves. Just look at the places in Africa the Chinese government has slowly overtaken. China sees the strategic value of Iraq. The oil is something that China needs, and having access to the southern oil fields would be a god-send to them. Having a permanent position in the Middle East, where their ships can dock and their military can roam with free will, would be a blessing. The US would have to negotiate with the Iraqi government, who have Chinese advisors, for anything. The Russians have enough oil, and they have enough issues at the moment, not to move fast into this power vacuum. That is why I believe the Chinese will move into this. The Indian government would like the opportunity, however, with the issues the Indians are having with Pakistan, the Indians cannot take their eye off that ball at all. The Pakistan government is under siege from the Taliban on many sides, and may make a temporary, shakey truce with the Indians, but not enough of one for the Indians to help Iraq. No one in Europe will make a move without having a great debate, and the UN will only wring their hands.

We MUST, not we should, not maybe, We MUST assist Iraq. We MUST send our troops to help. Why would I say something like this? It’s because we allowed this to happen. We left the Iraqi security forces unprepared. We didn’t build the Iraqi government, help them clean up their act, work with the Kurdish people to insure their inclusion, work with Sunni to make sure they are part of the government. These are things that the DOS and the DOD were supposed to do. Had we had this attitude after World War II, Europe would have been smothered under the Soviet boot, Korea, Japan, the Phillipine Islands, and Vietnam would have all been part of China. The Middle East would have overwhelmed and buried Israel, or, at the least, the whole Middle East would have been a smoking whole and a night light for Europe. We started this in Iraq. We must return, and we MUST finish this properly. We must go back in, build bases and consulates throughout. We must have our military help put down this insurgency, and then train with them to insure this doesn’t happen again. We must make sure that those who have done so much harm to the Iraqi people are bought to justice. If necessary, we must put in someone to directly advise the Iraqi government, regardless of what the appearances are, to insure all the Iraqi people have a say in their government, that all can worship as they wish, and that trade and commerce can be done without worry about terrorists.

The alternative does not bear thinking.

“We Must All Stand Together, Or Assuredly, We Shall All Hang Separate..”

I promise not to get on my soapbox..too much. However, this is something I do feel a little vehement about.Our elected officials put restrictions on the use of deadly force by the ordinary citizenry. These officials feel that the only ones that should carry firearms should be those that protect these self-same elected officials, and that everyone else should be satisfied with the protection of the local law-enforcement community. This is, of course, the same justification the British had for limiting firearms in the colonies, the same justification that Hitler had for rearming his country’s military, the same reason the former Soviet Union kept a lockdown on all local firearms, and what every dictator and anyone who wants to keep people down wants.

Today, we had another shooting at a school. This made news because it happened in a suburban neighborhood, a “safe” area. What about the shootings and murders that happen in inner-city neighborhoods? What about muggings and stabbings that happen on street corners country-wide? What’s this monumental silence about? Because guns make a bigger bang, no pun intended, for newspapers when these things happen in “safe” neighborhoods.There is no such thing as a safe neighborhood, when local politicians and associations want to limit the protections afforded by the constitution. When guns are outlawed, only outlaws will have guns. And the outlaws have many, many guns. Hell, because of Fast and Furious, promulgated by the attorney general and the president, the outlaws have better weaponry than the police, in many cases. And the attacks in many places are being helped by what can on only be described as criminally insane laws that prevent the average homeowner from protecting themselves. Home invasions are happening in many states, however, the only ones you hear about are in the states with “gun-free” zones. The other states, who allow homeowners and anyone who wants to, to carry openly or concealed, generally speak of the “deceased home invader” and thus are not considered worthy of news. In the so-called gun-free zones, the amount of victims in home invasions subjected to abuse, rape, murder, is substantially as much as in inner-cities. Before anyone tries trolling, please use your intelligence, the one you, I believe, was born with and is still available, and check the statistics from the FBI, the local and state law enforcement groups, etc. Let me know, using facts, not opinions, I am mistaken. You will find that, sadly, I am not.

The problem with school shootings is not the weapons. If people want to commit a crime, they will. It is the lack of opportunity for those who are supposed to protect our most natural resources, our young, to do anything about protecting them. If this school had a policy of armed intervention by the school officials, someone could have prevented this. But, because so many people feel that guns lead people to commit violent acts, and using the same level of intelligence, decide to ban guns to prevent violence, when a violent offender appears with a weapon and disregard of any laws, those who should be able to protect our children, instead, find themselves victims of a law that doesn’t protect anyone, save the person committing the crime. How is this justice? Its a good thing that these silly laws were not in place during the formation of our country. We’d still be drinking tea instead of coffee, playing soccer instead of football, cricket instead of baseball, and celebrating the Queen’s speech on Christmas day.

We have a large group of people in positions that they should not have, making decisions they should not make, on our everyday lives. And we have an even greater group of people who feel that this is right and proper. When our grandfathers came back from WWII, Korea, Vietnam, they didn’t want to hear anything about weapons. These people had seen the elephant. They were, and still are, prepared to accept violence to preserve the liberty and the safety of their loved ones. An abhorrence of weapons and violence was not why they kept quiet. It was a desire, a hope, that violence was no longer needed, but they all, everyone, understood, that someone must stand at the gates to prevent the barbarians. These defenders never felt that giving up the right to violence is a necessary thing. However, having seen violence, they all knew those who they protected, would not quite understand their feelings, but they never said peace was now at hand. However, those who never faced the sounds of weapons, mistakenly believed that meant that we are supposed to do away with weapons because the world was becoming a kinder, gentler place. The hippies singing about “Imagine®” had been smoking too much cannabis, partaking of way too much mind-altering substances such as LSD, to form a coherent thought, yet were perceived to be the harbinger of the future: A world at peace. Man’s only condition is chaos, peace is achievable only at the expense of maintaining a vigilance, yet we have an entire generation that believes such nonsense as weapons are not needed.

“If you are willing to sacrifice a little liberty, for a little security, you deserve, and will receive, neither…”